The Character of Robert Walton in Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein".
In the novel Frankenstein we are initially exposed to a character by the name of Robert Walton. We learn about him through a series of four letters addressed to his sister. Within these letters we come to know important character traits. We discover that Robert Walton is a very complex man and well rounded character.
Robert Walton is inconsistent with his attitude towards himself. Over the course of the four letters he said on occasion that he was self-taught and finds himself to be "more illiterate than many school-boys of fifteen" (Shelley 913). The fact that he finds himself to be more un-educated than a fifteen year old boy shows his lack of confidence in himself. Although his lack of self-assurance may be justified, being self-educated could be seen as a strength. As well, his impulsiveness could be both a positive or negative aspect. He lives for himself this as seen in the quote, "These are my enticements, and they are sufficient to conquer all fear of danger or death, and to induce me to commence this laborious voyage with the joy a child feels when he embarks in a little boat with his holiday mates, on an expedition of discovery up his native river." (Shelley 913). On the contrary, his spontaneity could be seen as a destructive force. When he leaves on his voyage where he "may there discover the wondrous power which attracts the needle" (Shelley 913), it seems as though he sets off without an objective.
He had an inquisitive mind thirsting for knowledge, and as a result this gave him the drive to pick up a book and begin his studies, to educate himself. "These volumes were my study day and night" (Shelley 913). Robert's father did not approve of his son's dreams of becoming a sea-faring man and wished upon him the life of a scholar to which he took for one year in which he failed. Bearing the disappointment he turned towards his childhood dream.
